Avowed release notes (patch 1.2.2): Equipment quality comments begone

Avowed is finally live for all non-Premium Edition Steam purchasers as well as all Game Pass subscribers. With the full release, the developers have gotten rid of one of the most obnoxious things about early-game learning woes: the constant companion callouts telling you your equipment won't cut it. The developers have also piped down the huge penalties imposed on you for engaging a higher-quality enemy (the gall!).

That's not all, though. The Game Pass version of Avowed will also enjoy a series of bug fixes and optimization changes for a better experience than what the advanced access has been so far. Here are the full patch notes of hopefully many more.

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All changes and bugfixes in Avowed full release patch (1.2.2)

Community-requested fixes

• Updates to Equipment Tier difference feedback and penalties/bonuses:
• Changed Tier penalty system from a hard tier to tier system and made it dynamic based on players equipment and the tier (and sub-tier) of the enemy. Tier difference rules now only apply when there is a +/- 4 level gap.
• Tier II enemies will now play a small reaction animation when struck by lower-tier weapons, instead of not reacting at all.
• Reduced damage reduction when player weapons are closer in tier to an enemy.
• Significantly decreased how often companions comment about player needing better armor and/or weapons.
• Upgrade materials can no longer be sold to merchants to inadvertently make upgrading difficult. We have a longer-term fix involving buying back from merchants in the works.

Missing NPCs

• In specific situations, some NPCs weren’t where they should be. Saving the game, and re-loading will put them back where they should be. We will have a fix soon that fixes the situation completely and doesn’t require a save and load.

Quest & Exploration fixes

• The brambles in the Delemgan Glade will now vanish when the Adragan Heart is acquired, preventing players from getting stuck inside.
• Grysca (the apothecary) now correctly speaks with the player to advance An Untimely End, even if they previously encountered a bug with Thalla the Ogre spawning twice.
• Added a system to respawn key characters when loading a save if they were previously missing and blocking quest progression (including Ambassador Hylgard and The Watcher Runyd).

Companion & NPC improvements

• Reviving companions in combat now restores them to 75% of their maximum health instead of 50%.
• Starting health of companions has been increased to help with their viability in combat.

Merchants & Economy

• Merchants at the Dawnshore docks now offer 'Fine' gear in addition to 'Common' gear.

Crashes & Major issues

• Removed chance to crash when casting Corrosive Siphon on destructible objects.
• Optimized resource handling of VFX while the game is paused via radial menus to prevent rare leaks and crashes.

Quest & area design

• Fixed invisible collision blocking the player in Strangleroot.
• Prevented players from charging into unintended areas in Strangleroot, avoiding quest progression issues.
• Enemies now navigate the bridges of the lava tubes more consistently.
• First Contact with the Enemy quest now progresses correctly if all badges are collected before speaking to Nauki.
• Players can now complete Steel Resolve after the main quest in Emerald Stair if they had completed enough objectives beforehand.
• Kowha now responds correctly if the player returns to them after starting One Last Drink.
• Dialog with Giatta upon leaving Naku Tedek now triggers consistently when loading saves before the conversation.
• Updated Mapping the Living Lands quest conditions to allow starting from future regions before talking to the quest giver in Dawnshore.
• Updated A Lady Never Tells quest flow so it correctly completes in the quest log when starting via the courtesan, getting the shipment, then speaking to Giuliana.
• Governor Ignasi’s option to turn in the spy can now only be triggered once instead of being repeatable.
• Conversations with leaders in the final area no longer end prematurely when choosing the Let me reconsider option.
• Made an additional ending option for the leadership conclave available to players who initially backed out but wish to reconsider.
• Adjusted environment art near the Trantons bounty in Emerald Stair to prevent bounty loot from becoming unobtainable.
• Previously missing voice-over lines in ambient content now play correctly.

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Systems & gameplay improvements

• Seeds of Vengeance summons now scale correctly with health and damage.
• One-handed weapon Parry enchantments now function as intended.
• Party buffs from the player now correctly target companions only, instead of summoned creatures.
• Kai no longer gets stuck if using Unbending Defense while mid-air with Leap of Daring.
• Improved frame rate when rendering damage numbers on multiple enemies at once.
• Improved item randomization when restocking shops.
• Blast ability for wands now plays the correct visual and sound effects.
• Improved logic for animations on companions at the end of combat.
• Improved transitions on the top of Mt. Forja.
• Fixed interaction inconsistencies with objects and NPCs obscured by other characters.
• Controllers no longer rumble when loading a save before the final boss fight.
• Fixed issues with pond coin interactions.
• Added error codes for save game failures.
• Improved where characters are looking during certain conversations.

Audio improvements

• Cutscene in Naku Kebel now properly plays sound effects.
• Eating food from the radial menu now provides audio feedback.
• Increased volume of Woedica’s voiceover audio.
• Player voice now plays more consistently for abilities with vocal components.
• Improved transitions between music intensity levels when exploring.
• Music during the end slides now plays at the intended volume.

Visual & art fixes

• Updated Banner Dwarf’s outfit LODs to reduce clipping during animation.
• Captain Ngunu’s neck is now properly merged with his head.
• Steel Garrote Soldiers have re-grown their missing hands.
• Improved shadow quality on Xbox Series X Performance Mode.

User Interface (UI) & Controls

• Cloud transfer prompt is now properly centered on ultrawide displays.
• Xbox cloud transfer dialog buttons no longer shake rapidly when hovering over the bottom part of the button.
• Initial splash screens now properly support Chinese characters.
• Interaction prompts pop up more reliably.
• Opening a radial menu after leaving and returning to the game no longer triggers the pause menu.
• Removed unintended English characters in the One Last Drink quest journal for non-English languages.
• Cloud save UI now defaults to selecting the recommended option.

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Check out our other Avowed guides:

• Avowed Beginner tips
• How does Second Wind work?
• Avowed Magic system guide
• Normal Attacks vs Power Attacks
• All Companions in Avowed